Advances in semiconductor manufacturing technology and digital systems architecture have led to the development of electronic systems that operate at ever higher frequencies. Such high frequency operation increases the importance of reducing or eliminating impedance mismatches when connecting two or more electrical components, or devices. Connections between components, printed circuit boards, and systems, is conventionally accomplished by means of connectors. Unfortunately, conventional connectors tend to introduce undesirable impedance mismatches.
Coaxial cable, or coax, has traditionally been used in many high frequency systems for signal transmission. Conventional connectors that have been used to attach coax to signal sources and destinations, generally have an adverse effect on the integrity of the signal transmitted through those connectors. Conventional connectors may introduce impedance mismatches which degrade signal integrity, or quality. The result of such signal degradation is a reduction in the frequency operating range for the systems in which such conventional coax connectors are used.
Another approach to high frequency signal transmission is the twin-axial cable, or twinax. Twinax, by including two signal conductors surrounded by dielectric and a common ground shield, provides a means to employ low voltage differential signalling. Conventional connectors for twinax, like those for coax, degrade the integrity, or quality, of the signals transmitted through such conventional twinax connectors. The result of such signal degradation is a reduction in the frequency operating range for the systems in which such conventional twinax connectors are used.
Regardless of whether coax or twinax is used to transmit signals in a system, both such conductors are often required to connect components physically located on different printed circuit boards. In some circumstances, these printed circuit boards are arranged such that they are perpendicular to each other. These perpendicular arrangements of circuit boards may be found in personal computers and similar electronic systems. Such perpendicularly oriented circuit boards are sometimes referred to as daughter cards. To connect these boards, the coax or twinax are conventionally fitted with connectors at either end of a cable segment, and the cable bent through a predetermined radius of curvature so that a connection may be made between the two circuit boards. As noted above, such a connection architecture degrades the signal quality, and thereby the speed at which such an electronic system may operate.
Additionally, it is well known that electronic systems with high frequency operation are now common in consumer electronic products. Consumer electronics is one segment of the electronics market that is particularly sensitive to the costs of the component parts used to construct such products.
What is needed are methods and apparatus for improving the electrical performance of connectors in high frequency systems, and lowering the cost of such connectors as compared to conventional connectors.